Observations focused on the problems of an underdeveloped country, Venezuela, with some serendipity about the world (orchids, techs, science, investments, politics) at large. A famous Venezuelan, Juan Pablo Perez Alfonzo, referred to oil as the devil's excrement. For countries, easy wealth appears indeed to be the sure path to failure. Venezuela might be a clear example of that.

Archive for December 12th, 2005

-Nicolas
Maduro, President of the National Assembly: “The new National Assembly will
legislate so that President Chavez can govern until the year 2030”

My take:
Hey! Why not eternal President? Or King?Or Emperor?

-Juan
Barreto, Mayor of the Metropolitan area of Caracas: “People don’t want so much voting to
elect representatives, people want Chavez and power for the people…people
don’t want anymore of the representative democracy…”

My take: I
think we should have an election on that, but hey! What do I know!

-Nicolas Maduro,
President of the National Assembly: “Voting should be a social duty, let’s give
it an obligatory character so that citizens don’t evade their responsibilities
due to manipulations”
My take:
What if even then people don’t vote? Will they be jailed? Or will they just
make a new list?

-Francisco
Ameliach, former President of the National Assembly and reelected Deputy for a
new term: “We can’t do anything about those that did not vote, but we can do
something about the members of MVR who did not go and vote”

My take:
He should ask the Head of the Electoral Board (CNE), Jorge Rodriguez, to give him
that confidential list, he has done it before and they can screw their own people
illegally.

-Clodosbaldo
Russian, Head of one of the “independent” powers, the Comptroller’s Office
that is supposed to keep the Government in check, honest and efficient: “It
makes no sense for the opposition to participate in the 2006 (Presidential)
elections. After the errors made made in repeated occasions by the leaders of
that sector, they have no possibility of victory…”

My take: I
guess with a guy like that overseeing corruption, it will be rampant as long as
he is there and he must like his job a lot to defend it so strongly. But he definitely
is as independent-minded as he is democratic-minded.

-Vice-President
Rangel: “We should sanction the parties that withdrew from the election
because they made the Government spend money on them…who responds for this
damage to the state? There has to be some form of sanction.

My take:
What about those that spent hundreds of millions of dollars to buy fingerprint
capturing machines that are useless and were only used to violate the rights of
the people? Or the voting machines that did what they were not supposed to do
and were thus faulty? Or spent all that money in voting machines and eight days
later we still don’t have final results, but the people in Chile knew last
night their complete results with paper ballots? Shouldn’t they also be
sanctioned?

Many
Government Officials: Opposition parties are now illegal because they did not
participate in the election.

My take:
That is not what the law says, the law says two five year periods without getting
you enough votes, forces you to get the petition to become legal again. I know, who cares about the law in this Government…Primero Justicia’s take:
Make us illegal, we will get the signatures anyway. “We are not scared”